Rome mayor found not guilty in case of City Hall appointment

FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 27, 2017 file photo, Rome's mayor Virginia Raggi attends an event at Rome's Capitol Hill. A verdict is nearing for Rome’s mayor, on trial for allegedly lying about a City Hall hire. Witness testimony ended Friday at Rome’s courthouse in the trial of Virgina Raggi, the most prominent mayor from the populist 5-Star Movement. Prosecutors allege she lied to anti-corruption officials when she insisted she alone picked the head of the city tourist office. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File ) (Alessandra Tarantino)

ROME (AP) — Rome's embattled mayor was found not guilty Saturday of a charge of lying over a City Hall appointment, ending a months-long trial that had threatened her political career.

Mayor Virginia Raggi hugged her lawyers after the judge read the verdict finding no crime had been committed in the appointment of a city tourist official.

Prosecutors alleged she had lied to anti-corruption officials when she insisted the choice of the official — the brother of her top aide at the time — was hers alone. Prosecutors alleged the appointment was engineered by her aide.

"This verdict sweeps away two years of mud," Raggi tweeted. "We continue with our heads high for Rome, my beloved city, and for all citizens."

Raggi always denied the charge. If convicted, she could have faced a 10-month sentence and the loss of her position as mayor. The rules of the 5-Star Movement to which she belongs state that any member convicted of a crime can't stay in office, even pending appeal.

Rome mayor Virginia Raggi leaves her house, in Rome, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A verdict is expected within hours for Rome's mayor, on trial in the Italian capital for allegedly lying about a City Hall hire.(Riccardo Antimiani/ANSA via AP) (AP)

The end of the trial removes one hindrance to the mayor, who remains, however, under pressure over a general sense of decay in Italy's capital, ranging from the failure to remove trash from some neighborhoods to breakdowns in the city's transport system, including a fire on a city bus in the center and the collapse of an escalator packed with Russian soccer fans.

Romans vote in a non-binding referendum this weekend on whether they want the city's transport city to be privatized.

Rome mayor Virginia Raggi leaves her house, in Rome, Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. A verdict is expected within hours for Rome's mayor, on trial in the Italian capital for allegedly lying about a City Hall hire.(Riccardo Antimiani/ANSA via AP) (AP)

FILE - In this Thursday, June 23, 2016 file photo, Rome's Mayor Virginia Raggi waves to reporters in Rome. A verdict is nearing for Rome’s mayor, on trial for allegedly lying about a City Hall hire. Testimony ended Friday, Nov. 9, 2018 in the trial of Virginia Raggi, the most prominent mayor from the populist 5-Star Movement. Prosecutors allege she lied to anti-corruption officials when she insisted she alone picked the head of the city tourist office. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File) (AP)

RNN Staff

Witnesses and medical officials say an Associated Press cameraman has been shot and wounded while covering a demonstration in the Gaza Strip. Rashed Rashid, 47, was hit in the leg Monday during a weekly protest next to the Israeli border